Lithium
by ClareLogan
Summary: Best friends, Craig and Ellie, encounter after 2 years. What will happen? (Slightly A/U)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N; Hi there, this is my first fanfiction. I don't think there is much to say, but reviews are well appreciated, I'd like to know how I'm doing, and favorites would be nice as well. Hope you enjoy the story **

**Disclaimer; I don't own Degrassi. This is just a ****fan****fiction**

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"So, that'd be: One Coca Cola, one sweet tea, and-" She paused, pointing at the young child sitting at the table.

"And one chocolate milk." He told her with a grin. Ellie nodded.

"Got it!" She responded, scribbling down the order and making her way to the back.

Letting out a sigh, she scrambled to find cups. It was a Friday night and Ellie would rather be doing anything other than this. It would be nice to just relax at home and let her mind wander as she would write her thoughts down on a piece of paper. Unfortunately nobody was interested in her work and she was forced to work at The Dot until someone found somewhat of interest in her writing.

Checking the watch on her wrist, Ellie let out a sigh of relief. _7:25_. In five minutes work would be finished and she'd be able to go and do what she pleased on this Friday night. She wasn't sure what she was in the mood for; a nice relaxing night at home, or a fast-paced night with drinks. Although Marco had told her to stay away from alcoholic drinks, the red head had been going out on a few occasions to have them anyways. That would be something nice to go out and do tonight, especially since Marco was away for a week on a trip with his new boyfriend_. Boyfriend_. Ellie kept telling herself she was finished with boys, but she somewhat envied her friend. Why couldn't she just find someone to love her? Where was her Prince Charming? Why did everyone hurt her?

"Nash! Hurry up! Work isn't over until another three more minutes!" She heard her boss yell from the kitchen and she quickly stopped her thoughts and got back to work. Pushing a strand of orange hair behind her ear, she rushed to finish what the family ordered.

"_Coke, tea, chocolate milk._" She repeated under her breath as she filled the cups with the drinks in that order.

Fixing the family what they needed, she smiled, setting down their drinks. Her watch beeped. Ellie let out a sigh of relief_. __Finally_. It was now time to enjoy her Friday night.

"Hope you all enjoy your drinks!" She told them quickly as she rushed into the backroom to get her things. Honestly, she was supposed to wait until the customers had finished their drinks, but the girl had a long day of work and all she wanted to do was go and enjoy her night. Packing up her things, she slung her bag over her shoulder and she quickly attempted to make her way out of The Dot without getting yelled at by her boss.

"Nash!" Her boss yelled harshly. "Your shift ain't over yet! You aren't done until they finish what they have!" He told her, pointing to the small family taking sips of their drinks.

"Sorry, sir!" She paused as she left out the door. "Don't worry! Mo promised to take over the rest of my shift!" She reassured him, rushing onto the streets of Toronto. _Phew_. Work was over for the week and now it was time to do something. Drinking or relaxing? Relaxing or drinking? Decisions, decisions. It didn't take her long to realize what she _really _wanted to do.

"Drinking it is!" She said aloud with a cheeky grin, making her way to the local tavern. Fortunately the establishment was close to her work and didn't involve the need to take any form of public transportation.

After a few moments; the red had arrived at her destination. Glancing at the small sign on the window she read _OPEN MIC-NIGHT_. Even better, she'd enjoy a few drinks while enjoying some quality entertainment by the citizens of Toronto. Making her way into the place, Ellie was able to smell the thick scent of alcohol and cigarettes. The familiar scent didn't bother her anymore, and she was used to it. She used to come here every few weeks, but now it was almost every other day. Nobody was home to scold her for drinking, and she could do whatever she wanted.

"Aye, El, you're here!" A booming voice called to her from across the bar.

"Hah. I am, aren't I?"

"Get your ass over here, then!"

"Yeah, yeah." She replied with a small laugh, making her way over to the bar and taking a seat beside a large group of bulky men. "Better watch your language there." Ellie added jokingly, turning her attention to the bartender, and ordering herself a drink.

Handed her drink, the red took a small sip and let the familiar bitter liquid run down her throat. She was used to the taste and she grew quite fond of it. El now understood why her mother liked it so much. It was something to make her problems go away. She was _never_ going to be like her mother, though. _Never ever_! She promised herself that from the day she tasted alcohol for the first time. Her thoughts continued to drift off on the subject.

"Nash?!" She heard one of the men call. "You there?" He asked, the rest of the men laughing behind him.

"Oh, yeah! Totally! Just thinking about…stuff." She responded with a smile and a small laugh. "I think it's about time for some shots!"

"YEAH!" Everyone cheered and Ellie grinned.

Taking out a few shot glasses, the bartender began to fill with different kinds of alcohol. Ellie always went first, Lady's first of course. After a few moments, they began.

"Up next is-" The man on stage announced.

"Uh- Craig." A familiar voice said into the microphone, bringing Ellie's attention to the stage and away from the glasses.

The tall figure grinned as he got comfortable on the small stool. Adjusting his guitar, he looked at his audience. Same hazel eyes, dark hair, and that arrogant smirk. It was all just so familiar. This wasn't just any guy.

"Craig _Manning_?"

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**A/N: This is a pretty short chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it, though! I hope to update longer chapters! No worries **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N; I'm sorry this took a while for Chapter 2, but I've been having horrible writer's block this week and I've been waiting for a few reviews to see if I was any good. So ladies and gentlemen, I present to you - Chapter 2.**

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Clapping from the crowd could be heard from backstage as Craig glanced down at his guitar. It had been years since he had visited Toronto and he much preferred the Hollywood life; being a rock star. But there wasn't anything exciting booked for him, so he decided to take another visit to what he used to call home. Maybe he'd even run into an old friend from Degrassi.

"Up next is – "

Craig instantly jumped up and walked on stage. "Uh- Craig." He spoke up with a small nervous laugh that had turned into Craig Manning's signature smirk. He scanned his crowd. Their faces all were on him. Maybe some of them had recognized him. Hell, he was famous, they all probably knew him.

Adjusting his position on the stool, he ran a hand threw his curly dark hair. "I'll be singing a song I wrote on my way here. Haven't really found a title for it yet but I hope you like it." He told his audience with a grin before looking down at his guitar. After a few moments, everyone had silenced, and the boy began to strum on his guitar.

He enjoyed this; performing. It was something he knew he was born to do. Every few moments during his song he'd glance up at his audience. They all seemed to enjoy his song. This put a big smirk on the dark-haired boy's face. He continued to scan the bar to see everyone's reactions. One reaction stuck to him. Orange hair, big brown eyes, and a warm smile. She seemed to have the same reaction he had. They were both surprised to see each other. In the middle of the song, his words jumbled into a bunch of mumbles as he kept his attention on the girl. _Ellie Nash_.

Snapping back into his song, he quickly began to sing again, his face turning a light shade of red. Why was she here? He'd expect her to be somewhere with Marco or Paige; maybe even taking care of her father. What surprised him more that she was in a bar. He'd think after her last situation with alcohol she'd try to stay away from it.

Craig sang the last few lyrics to his song, and stood up to take a bow. Turning his attention back to his audience he smiled cheekily. Clapping, clapping, and clapping. He glanced over at the red, who seemed to be cheering and clapping too.

The boy made his way backstage and set his guitar safely into its case. Thoughts flooded his mind. Ellie Nash, music, and Hollywood. He still couldn't believe this girl was here in Toronto. Hopefully she was able to get some writing done; maybe she had even gotten a nice job for a newspaper or something. Ellie Nash was a very professional girl; she'd be perfect for any job. Anybody to take her in would be a very lucky folk.

"Craig Manning - great to see you!" He could hear faintly behind him. Turning around he saw the petite red-haired girl making her way to him. Standing up and propping his guitar in its case on the wall and turned to look at Ellie again. She quickened her pace until she wrapped her arms tightly around him for a hug.

"Yeah, great to see you too, El." Craig told her with a small laugh, breaking from the hug to take a look at her. She hadn't changed. The same warm smile, and bright eyes. "Didn't expect to see you in a place like this."

"What can I say? I'm a red-headed for trouble!" She laughed. "Seriously though, what brings _you_ here?"

"Manager said I had a bit of free time, so I decided to come back to ole' Toronto."

"Well, I'm glad you're back for a while!" She brought the boy back into another hug. Breaking from it, she took a step back. "How's, uh, Yvette?" The girl asked, trying to look around and see if Craig had brought his girlfriend with him. The two seemed to be on good terms, so she hoped Craig was still happy with her. Ellie was slightly sensitive about the topic, but she finally accepted that Craig Manning should be happy with whoever she chose.

"Ahah, well, we aren't together anymore. We, uh, never worked out."

"That's too bad, sorry about that."

"Nah, don't be sorry, El." He told her, shrugging it off. There wasn't anything special about Yvette. She was just a girl, like everybody else Craig had dated in the past. "The single life is the best life."

"Can't argue with that!" Glancing back, the red-head looked up at her old friend. "Want to stay awhile for some drinks?"

The dark-haired boy pondered on the request for a few seconds. "Sure!"

Ellie's face lit up. This would be a fun evening with the one and only Craig Manning. He always seemed to bring enjoyment to her life as long as the two kept it just friends. "Great!" She grabbed his hand and took him back to the bar, as he struggled to quickly grab his guitar.

Looking at the buff men that sat at the barstools somewhat intimidated Craig. They could probably snap both friends in half. The girl looked up to see his reaction to the men. "Come on, Craig, don't be a wuss. They aren't _that_ bad." She reassured him with a small laugh, taking her seat at the bar, and motioning for Craig to join her.

"Eleanor Nash, are you sure you should be drinking this kind of stuff?" He asked her, cocking an eyebrow.

"What are you? My mother? I'm _fine_! A little alcohol never hurt anyone."

He knew he couldn't argue with Ellie forever, so he shrugged it off and order the two a drink.

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It was getting late and Ellie had already lost count of how many drinks she had consumed, and Craig was still at one. Looking over at the girl; Craig let out a sigh. "El, I think you've had enough drinks for tonight." He told her as he jumped off of his stool.

"No- " But before she could argue, the dark-haired boy helped her from her stool and set money down for the bartender. As he took her out of the bar, she stumbled into many chairs and mumbled words that Craig couldn't really understand. Feeling for his key for his room in the motel across the street, he let out a sigh of relief that he didn't lose it. He was going to let his friend stay the night at his place, as it was obvious she couldn't drive or walk without stumbling over. He wasn't sure where she was staying, and he knew she was too intoxicated to probably even remember.

Dragging her across the street to the small motel, all he could hear were small drunken mumbles and giggles from the red. The boy had never seen Ellie like this before and it surprised him.

Pulling out his key, Craig unlocked the door to his room and let the girl fall back on the bed. The only place he could sleep was the small cushioned chair beside the window. He didn't want to make his drunken friend uncomfortable by sharing a bed with her, so he knew it'd be best if he just kept his distance, he didn't want her to wake up and think of something between the two.

"Hey! Where ya' goin'? Come here!" Ellie slurred, sitting up from the bed, noticing he wasn't in the bed with her, but in the small chair instead. "I want you _here._" She continued, motioning to the spot beside her. "And I'm not takin' no for a' answer."

He sighed. Even when she was drunk she was defiant. "Alright. You win." Making his way to his bed, he laid beside her. "Better?"

"Much better." She spoke softly in his ear, the scent of different kinds of alcohol on her breath. Wrapping her arms around the boy, she laid her head on his chest. Nervous jitters filled Craig. When she awoke in the morning he wouldn't know what to say about this.

But right now he wanted to cherish this moment. This was nice. He missed his friend, Ellie Nash, a lot. Tonight, no rock star worries, the two would just lay together until they fell asleep.

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**A/N; I know this wasn't very good, but I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I hope to update sooner!**


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